APT Goa day two done; Marina Bay Sands Singapore resolves dispute

Amit Varma

Amit VarmaIndia hailed its first ever Asian Poker Tour (APT) Asian Series champion on the second day of the current stop off the coast of India in Goa. Amit Verma took down the INR15000 Head Hunter event beating 75 runners on the way to a prize of INR293500 (£3680). Of those players, eight special INR5000 bounties were given to noteworthy players attending the event including event one winner Phil Sanders, two-time WSOP bracelet winner Mel Judah, US pro Nam Thien Le, Tom Hall and many more. Alongside the prize, Verma received a complementary APT Philippines Main Event package worth US$3000.

Marina Bay Sands Singapore has been forced into a climb-down by online forums in a dispute over prize money. The casino had originally refused to pay a local woman Sg$300,000 after claiming the machine had been faulty. Instead they offered Choo Hong Eng, 58, Sg$50,000 and an Sg$258,962 sports car that she could sell back to the premises. This was rejected out of hand and she complained to the regulators. AFP reported a statement from Marina Bay Sands, saying: “After carefully reviewing this matter, Marina Bay Sands will pay the patron the amount that was displayed on the slot machine of Sg$416,742.11 ($322,720.55). We deeply regret the inconveniences caused.”

The pressure had intensified when it was revealed in online forums that the casino business has failed to pay the amount out correctly. It prompted the keyboard warriors to take to their positions and the end result is as expected. Choo plans to donate half the amount to around 20 different charities